


First Meetings

by DreamingInWonderland



Category: For the People (TV 2018)
Genre: F/M, First Meetings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2019-10-07
Packaged: 2020-11-27 03:24:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20941487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamingInWonderland/pseuds/DreamingInWonderland
Summary: Five first meetings that Jill and Roger didn't have, and the one first meeting they did have.





	First Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is the first fic I've wrote for this fandom, so I'm more than a little nervous about posting it. I didn't initially plan to post this as it was a little something I wrote to get used to writing the characters of Jill and Roger, but the other fic I'm working on was taking some wrangling. I'm not entirely sure I've got the characterisation just right at the moment, but I'll keep working on it. 
> 
> Anyway, this is one of those 5 + 1 fics (which I've never wrote before either, so I hope it all works) and I apologise if any legal jargon mentioned in the last section isn't quite accurate, I used the internet to look into these things. I hope you like it

1 – Coney Island

For the longest time, Coney Island had been a treat for Roger and his siblings. It was never the fanciest place their parents had took them them to, but it was certainly their favourite. While his parents had taken his sister to ride the carousel, he and his brother had been left at the arcade, both being trusted to not run off. While his brother had drifted off towards whack-a-mole and the claw machines, Roger had found himself heading to the games of skill. He'd had a personal best on the Skeeball when he'd been there back in the spring, now he wanted to bear it. As the arcade was on the small side, there were only two Skeeball machines and one was out of order. He sighed deeply – or as deeply as a twelve year old boy could – when he saw the other was in use. Though he could only see her from behind, he guessed that she was around his age – especially as there seemed to be no parents or adults near her. He watched as the blonde plait swung back and forth with each throw that she made. He watched the dejected slump of her shoulders as the ball landed in one of the low scoring holes.

Roger stepped forward, unable to stop himself. “Its all in the wrist.” The girl turned round to face him and he noticed three things: she was pretty, despite the scowl she currently wore she had – what his grandmother would refer to as – kind eyes and her right arm was in a cast.

“I know. I'm doing it left handed,” she rolled her eyes. “I'd be better if my arm wasn't broken,” she held out one of the balls. “You wanna play?”

He took the ball she held out and watched as she stepped aside to let him reach the machine. He made a few shots, the ding of the ticket slot provided an accompaniment. “So how'd you break your arm?”

“Fell out a tree house,” she shrugged.

“How'd you manage that?”

“You ask a lot of questions.”

“I asked two,” he chuckled as the ball landed in the top hole and a bunch of tickets came out of the machine. He ripped them off and held them out to her. “Since you couldn't play properly.”

“Thank you,” she said with a small smile.

“Jill! It's time to go.”

“Bye,” she smiled as she turned and hurried towards the older blonde woman that had called her.

Roger turned back and proceeded to resume his game. For several minutes, he threw the balls and watched as they all ended up in the top scoring hole.

“Hey!”

He turned around to see Jill stood behind him. In her hands she held a navy baseball cap. He also noticed the white logo of the Yankees on it.

“What's that?”

Jill gave him a shy smile. “Those tickets were yours, so I got you this.”

“Yankees fan?”

“Best team there is.”

* * *

2) – Albany High School

Out of all the extra curricular activities that her high school offered, debate club had been the one that spoke the most to Jill. Years of arguing with her parents and sister had stood her in good stead. She didn't know what she wanted to do yet, but the guidance counsellor had commented that debate club would help her regardless of the future career she chose. Especially if she ended up in a job that required her to make persuasive points quickly and succinctly. Plus, it was a way to help her get over her slight fear of public speaking. After a few rocky weeks, Jill had gotten more confident in herself and was soon one of the school's best debaters. So much so, that at competitions she was often the one that lead the charge.

She sat on the steps of the school, the ribbon she'd been given as winner (there was a trophy, but that was currently on display in the trophy cabinet, glinting under the harsh artificial light) fluttered in the wind as she contemplated her win. The student she'd been up against had given her a run for her money and she'd relished it. So many of the schools that often competed put up students with no thought to the subject they'd be debating. But, clearly Stuyvesant High didn't value stupidity. Jill looked at her watch and saw that it was five after five. She should've been picked up at five, but her stepmother had said earlier that she might be a little late, so she wasn't too worried. She frowned as she noticed someone sit down on the steps beside her. She quickly realised that it was the boy that she'd gone up against, Roger something or other, she couldn't quite remember. Jill had been too in her head preparing her arguments when he'd been introduced.

“Shouldn't you be on the bus?” she asked indicating the yellow bus idling by the side walk.

“Probably,” he shrugged. “But, its broken down. Colin probably did it to speak to the cheerleader,” he added pointing out the tall, dark haired boy talking to a red haired girl. Jill rolled her eyes at the sight, they always wanted to talk to Carla. Though Jill – and several others in the school – knew Clara's affections lay with her fellow cheerleader Amanda. “First time I lost.”

“Excuse me?”

“You. The debate. First time I lost one of these events.”

“I'm sure your ego can take it,” Jill smiled. “Though you didn't make it easy. I appreciate that.”

“I don't believe in taking it easy on opponents.”

Jill smirked. “I'm not entirely sure you'd take it easy on anyone.”

“Well, I don't know if that's true,” Roger replied.

Jill gave him a quick once over. “I'm pretty sure it is,” she looked over at the drop off point and noticed the green Camaro that had just pulled up. “I'd love to debate this point further, but that's my ride,” she rose and picked up her backpack. “Maybe we'll get a rematch soon.”

“I certainly hope so.”

* * *

3) – Brown University

Roger looked around the campus. He wasn't seriously considering Brown as a place to get his degree and was only doing the campus tour to appease his uncle who had been rather insistent on the matter. His current post high school ambitions involved a college closer to home. His father hadn't been too well of late – and he had a feeling that there was more to it than what he had been told – so he wanted to be close to home. Thought as he looked around the red brick buildings, the various groups dotted around the quad, he had to admit it would be a nice place to study. Even though they didn't have a law school, and that was quite important to him. He didn't harbour any great ambitions, he just felt like being a lawyer was something he was meant to do. He walked over to the library which was where the tour of the campus would be starting from.

There were already several people loitering around for the tour. He lingered towards the back, he was never really one for too much social interaction. As he looked around the group, he noticed a young woman leant against a tree watching proceedings. Roger could tell by the name tag stuck to her denim jacket that – like him – she was here for the campus tour. He also noticed the Yankees patch that was sown onto the arm. He smiled slightly, it was rare to meet Yankees fans this far outside of New York.

“What do you think of our current chances?” The woman turned to look at him, a slight look of disgust on her face. Roger held his hands up in surrender, he hadn't meant his words to be construed _that_ way. He pointed to her arm indicating the patch. “Yankees. Their chances at winning.”

“Oh,” she replied giving him a sheepish smile. “As a lifelong fan, it pains me to say it, but I don't think we stand much of a chance. Not with the current line up. They shouldn't have traded Cotto.”

Roger gave a small smile. “I'm inclined to agree. But I think they might surprise us.”

“We shall see,” she replied. “So, Roger,” she said reading his name tag, “what interests you about Brown?”

“Nothing really,” Roger replied, he kept his voice low, so that the other students wouldn't hear. Especially as they may be seriously considering the university. “I'm only here as a favour to my uncle. What about you Jill?”

“I'm just exploring my options,” she said. “I don't really know quite what I want to do yet so I'm shopping around.”

Before he could question her further, the student that was conducting the tour arrived and the time for further conversation was over.

* * *

4) – The Four Seasons

As soon as she pushed open the door and walked out onto the terrace, Jill was met with the crisp autumn air and wished she'd remembered her wrap. However, she didn't much feel like heading back inside just yet. She didn't like a fuss, didn't like a palaver as she wasn't one to enjoy the spotlight on her, unless it was in relation to work. Cliff knew all of this and yet still he'd gone ahead and organised an engagement party. For the past two hours she'd stood and listened to the congratulations and best wishes from her friends, family and colleagues. As she leant against the railings, she rested the champagne flute against the top and contemplated the ring. It was a gold band with three diamonds as a centrepiece. When he'd proposed last month, she'd been more than a little blind-sided, it had seemed to come out of nowhere. Though looking back, Jill figured she really should've seen it coming. Their conversations of late had been geared towards the future. She loved him – at least she was sure she did – and knew that this was the next logical step. Even if marriage hadn't been something she'd contemplated before now. And yet, despite her misgivings – the few that she'd been pushing down at any rate – everything fit just so. She was fresh out of law school, held a prestigious junior position at Corden & Walsh, and newly engaged to the man who had been the most eligible guy on campus at Stanford. The one that all the girls had wanted to date. It was exactly the kind of life her parents had felt she deserved. She raised the glass to her lips and took a deep swig of champagne.

“Sorry, I didn't realise anyone else was out here.”

Jill turned around to see who had interrupted her contemplation. “It's a free country,” she sighed. “No law states that you can't be out here too,” she turned back to look out across the Manhattan skyline. “So, what brings you to the Four Seasons this fine evening?”

“A charity event for the firm I work for,” he replied. “The auction was about to start, and I don't like them at the best of times. What about you?” he asked as he leant against the railings.

“Engagement party,” she replied. “One my fiancé knew I didn't particularly want or need.”

“Shouldn't he know that?”

“You'd think,” Jill commented as she finished off her champagne.

“So, why are you marrying him then?”

Jill turned to face him, eyes ablaze. “Because I love him,” she replied, feeling more certain than she had before, even if doubt still niggled in the corner of her mind. “That a good enough reason?”

The man inclined his head in agreement. He held out a hand to introduce himself. “Roger Gunn.”

“Jill Carlan,” she replied. “I should probably head back inside.”

“Don't want them to think you've run off with a handsome stranger?”

“Something like that,” she laughed as she picked up the champagne flute and walked back inside the hotel

* * *

5) – Corden & Walsh

The night air was cold against her skin as she walked out of the building. She adjusted the box in her left arm, as she fixed her scarf with her right, she could've waited until tomorrow – her official last day – to pack up her things but she'd rather do it now, spare any curious glances. In the two weeks since Jill had handed in her notice, she'd dodged various questions about why she was really leaving and she felt no desire to answer them. Especially as they'd lead to further questions, namely the sudden disappearance of both her engagement and wedding rings. It had certainly been a whole life overhaul, it hadn't only been her job that she'd been lying to herself about.

It had been about a month after the wedding, that Jill had realised her feelings had changed. Initially she'd dismissed it, rationalising that feelings always changed after a wedding. But as time went on, and Cliff started to make more plans for their future, she realised that love was slowly turning to hate. The arguments hadn't helped either. She'd come home from work after handing in her notice, picked up the bag she'd had ready for weeks and left. Thankfully, she'd had somewhere that she could stay, otherwise it would have made the initial divorce proceedings harder than they needed to be.

“Do you need a hand?”

Jill looked up from adjusting the box to see a man stood in front of her.

“No, I've got it,” she said straightening up, the box held a little more securely. “But thanks for the offer, late and unnecessary as it was.”

The man gave a low chuckle. “Doing a moonlight flit?”

“No. But I don't see how its any of your business.”

“Fair point,” he nodded. “It's just an unusual time to be leaving an office.”

“Says the guy with a briefcase, who's also left work late,” she said with a wry smile. “Actually I quit. Tomorrow's actually my last day. I just didn't want too much of a fuss.”

“Did you get a better job offer or something?” he asked. “They're a great firm.”

“They are,” Jill agreed. “But, I didn't like who I was there. It wasn't who I wanted to be. Professionally at any rate.”

“And do you know yet?”

“I really don't.”

“Maybe this'll help you,” he reached into his briefcase and pulled out a card case and handed her his card.

“_Roger Gunn, US Attorney's Office, Criminal Division_,” she read. “Why would I want this?”

Roger smiled. “In case you want to do a job where you'll actually make a difference.”

“If I wanted to make a difference, it wouldn't be as a prosecutor,” Jill smirked. “But thanks anyway,” she said as she walked away.

* * *

6) – SDNY

Roger gave the papers one last look over, before he slid them into this briefcase, before he walked out of his office and towards the court house. He wasn't even supposed to be taking this assault case. He'd helped out in the initial stages, but all the trial preparations had been done by Byrne. However, Byrne was out due to a family emergency and both Delap and Gallagher were occupied with other cases, so the trial had been handed to him. Roger had spent most of the night working on a strategy, using Byrne's notes to craft opening and closing statements. Renee hadn't been too impressed, but he'd managed to sweet talk her into being less annoyed with him staying awake working. As he walked to the court house, Roger felt fairly confident about the trial. The only variable in his equation was opposing counsel. Jill Carlan was fairly new to the Public Defenders Office, and was an unknown quality to him. He'd had other colleagues go against her and they all said that she was relentless and didn't miss a trick.

-x-

Jill looked up from the file she was reading as the courtroom door opened. However, rather than turn around, she capped her pen and turned her eyes back to the file. She heard the slight squeak of the chair as it was pulled back from the opposite table. After several more moments of silence, Jill finally looked across the aisle at her opponent. She'd received word before she'd left the office last night, that she'd be going up against Roger Gunn instead of Nicholas Byrne. This would be her first time going up against him but she knew of his reputation in the courtroom. Grace had been the first in the office to go against him. She'd returned after an initial hearing, pale faced and shaky, but with a burning desire to see the prosecution completely dismantled at the next showdown. Other too had given her similar war stories, but Jill was fairly confident in her arguments. One piece of evidence was flimsy at best, and she knew that the testimony of one of the prosecution's witnesses wouldn't hold up to much probing. There were certainly a few weak points in it.

“So, you're Roger Gunn?” she asked, her tone one of disinterest. “I thought you'd be taller.”

Ignoring her comment about his height, he fixed her with a pointed gaze. “I didn't know my reputation preceded me.”

“Now you do,” she smiled. “You are quite a frequent topic in the office.”

“Am I?”

“Hmm,” she nodded. “In fact, Grace Tompkins is considering a dartboard with a picture of your face on it for the break room,” she added, a hint of a smile at the corners of her mouth.

“Feeling confident?”

“I like my chances,” she replied. “And a good fight.”

“Then a good fight you'll get.”

Jill gave him a small smile, it had been a while since she'd found someone she'd consider to be a worthy opponent.

-x-

Several days later, Roger left the court house, in a fairly good mood. He hadn't got the exact result he was looking for, but justice had still been served, even if Clive Edwards was only going to jail for a year instead of five. At the sound of footsteps, he turned to see Jill walking down the steps.

“You did good in there,” he said. “You weren't as good as me, but still, you were good.”

“Was that praise?” Jill asked. “I didn't know you had it in you.”

Roger smirked in reply. “Well, maybe next time you'll win.”

“Maybe I will,” she replied. “Until the next time then,” she said holding her hand out for him to shake.

“I'm already looking forward to it.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. I do have a few others planned if anyone wants to read them too. Anyway let me know what you thought.


End file.
